European Kingdoms

Helvetii (Gauls)
Incorporating the Ambrones, Toutonoi, Toygeni, & Verbigeni

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In general terms, the Romans coined the name 'Gaul' to describe the Celtic tribes of what is now central, northern, and eastern France. The Gauls were divided from the Belgae to the north by the Marne and the Seine, and from the Aquitani to the south by the River Garonne, while also extending into Switzerland, northern Italy, and along the Danube (see feature link for a discussion of the origins of the Celtic name).

By the middle of the first century BC, the Helvetii were located in south-western Switzerland. They were neighboured to the north by the Latobrigi, to the north-east and east by the Brigantii and Vindelici, to the south by the Vennones (either a sub-division of the Vindelici or a tribe of the Raeti), and to the west by the Raurici.

The Helvetii name is a hard one to break down, and those for the similarly-named Helveconae and Helvii also use the same core word in their names. All three are examined in greater detail in the accompanying feature (see link, right). Additionally, the '-et' in Helvetii could be a diminutive, making them the 'little owners' rather than the more simplistic 'owners'.

The four pagi, or cantons, of the Helvetii have interesting names themselves. The Ambrones may be made up of 'ambi-', plus two plural suffixes, '-on' and '-es'. The name would roughly refer to being both sides or all sides of something (often of a river), or in extended form would mean 'everywhere'.

However, they may instead have been named after a river called the Ambri. In the proto-Celtic word list, *ambri- is a river name (see feature link for more on river names). The second of the four pagi was that of the Tigurini who may or may not have been a late arrival, following the Cimbric War.

The Toutonoi / Toygeni / Tougeni name is fairly simple, with 'tout-' meaning 'tribe' or 'family' in Celtic (and this was also adopted into Germanic). The '-on' suffix is a Celt/German plural one, and '-oi' is a Greek alternative suffix. With Toygeni, the '-geni' is Latin for a clan or tribe (and possibly cognate with the Greek 'genes', meaning 'born, produced'. Toy- is obscure, but to/tu is 'you' in Celtic, and the proto-Celtic word list indicates that 'towo' is 'your' (possessive case). Could this mean 'your tribe'?

(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information by Edward Dawson & Trish Wilson, from Strabo's Geography, H C Hamilton & W Falconer, from Geography, Ptolemy, from Roman History, Cassius Dio, from Research into the Physical History of Mankind, James Cowles Pritchard, from Geography, Strabo, translated by H C Hamilton Esq & W Falconer, M A, Ed (George Bell & Sons, London, 1903), from Europe Before History, Kristian Kristiansen, from The History of Rome, Volume 1, Titus Livius (translated by Rev Canon Roberts), from Les peuples préromains du Sud-Est de la Gaule: Étude de géographie historique, Guy Barruol (De Boccard, 1999), from Encyclopaedia Britannica (Eleventh Edition, Cambridge (England), 1910), from Encyclopaedia of the Roman Empire, Matthew Bunson (1994), and from External Links: The Works of Julius Caesar: Gallic Wars, and United Nations of Roma Victrix, and the Indo-European Etymological Dictionary, J Pokorny, and Jones' Celtic Encyclopaedia, and L'Arbre Celtique (The Celtic Tree, in French), and Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz or Dictionnaire Historique de la Suisse or Dizionario Storico dell Svizzera (in German, French, and Italian respectively).)

113 - 105 BC

A large-scale migration of Cimbri and Teutones passes through Central Europe, and along the way it picks up Celto-Germanic Helvetii peoples who at this time are located in central Germany (in territory which later becomes Franconia), probably as near neighbours of the Helveconae. It also scoops up the Tigurini, but it drops off tribal fragments such as the Atuatuci.

An illustration depicting the Teutones wandering in Gaul, part of a large-scale migration from modern Denmark into northern Italy in the second century BC

Their passage sparks a partial tribal movement by elements of the Boii who invade the Norican region south of the Danube, and it is either the Cimbri or the Boii who attack the Scordisci Celts in the Balkans (the latter of the two being the more likely).

Together this band enters southern Gaul and northern Italy, and comes up against the Roman republic. The resultant Cimbric War sees initial Teuton and Cimbri success against tribes which are allied to Rome and a huge Roman army is destroyed at the Battle of Arausio in 105 BC.

107 BC

During the Cimbric War it is Consul Lucius Cassius Longinus who enters Gallia Narbonensis to oppose the Cimbri in defence of Rome's Allobroges allies. He is killed along with his lieutenant, Lucius Piso (grandfather of Lucius Calpurnius Piso, father-in-law to Julius Caesar), at the Battle of Burdigala, the chief town of the Bituriges Vivisci, and modern Bordeaux.

Roman Burdigala in the third century AD, clearly showing its expansion from a Celtic tribal oppidum to a sizeable thriving town

The victors are the Helvetii, who rout the Roman force under Cassius and force it to 'pass under the yoke' after it has surrendered the bulk of its supplies. The Helvetian canton which is responsible for the deed is that of the Tigurini, who are led by Divicus.

They have only recently broken away from the main Cimbri group after following it for two years so that they can raid Roman territories on both banks of the Rhône. It is an unfortunate coincidence for them that this is the canton which Caesar is first able to attack at the Battle of Bibracte in 58 BC. As such, they suffer the heaviest casualties of all the Helvetii, being all but annihilated.

102 - 101 BC

Consul Gaius Marius has been rebuilding the Roman forces, also employing numbers of Iberian Mercenaries (see feature link), while the Cimbri raid into Iberia. Now the weakened Teutones are defeated and enslaved.

The effective weapon of the Balearic warrior was the sling, with each man carrying three, wound around the head according to Strabo or, according to Diodorus, one around the head, one around the body, and one in the hand

The Ambrones are also defeated by Consul Marius, alongside allied Celto-Ligurians who, somewhat peculiarly, are also ascribed the name Ambrones when referring to their origin.

The Cimbri are similarly destroyed at the Battle of Vercellae in 101 BC (potentially the home of the Libici Gauls). It could be this event which sees the surviving Helvetii who had joined the migration from north of the Rhine now settle in south-western Switzerland.

They have been dragged away from their earlier homeland which is still home to the Helveconae, who are possibly their former fellow tribesmen. It could also be this point at which the Tigurini are absorbed by the Helvetii, or join with them, having escaped the slaughter of the Cimbri.

The origins of the Euganei, Ligurians, Raeti, Veneti, and Vindelici are confused and unclear, but in the last half of the first millennium BC they were gradually being Celticised or were combining multiple influences to create hybrid tribes (click or tap on map to view full sized)

? - 61 BC

Helvetii leader. Died before the migration attempt.

61 BC

The Helvetii are coming under greater pressure from migrating Germanic tribes who have now arrived to their north and are occupying territory on the east bank of the Rhine. They plan to migrate into the lowlands to the west.

However, their proposed path will take them through the territory of the Aeduii, a Roman ally, and tribes which lie in the way fear that the Helvetii will plunder and destroy as they go. Orgetorix dies before the planned exodus can go ahead, and a new chief is selected by the name of Divico.

61 - 58 BC

Helvetii leader. Not the Divicus of 109 BC. A descendant?

61 - 58 BC

Despite the death of Orgetorix, the Helvetii (and Tigurini) decide to go ahead with their planned exodus. Aquitania seems to be their target, where they hope to tie up with Boii who have settled there, close to the Atlantic coast, although Julius Caesar understands their target to be the land of the Santones, a little to the north of the Boii.

This vast map covers just about all possible tribes which were documented in the first centuries BC and AD, mostly by the Romans and Greeks, and with an especial focus on 52 BC (click or tap on map to view at an intermediate size)

During a forced march from Italy, he recruits two new legions to face the threat, although the Ceutrones, Graioceli, and Caturiges attempt to block his passage through the Alps. As he passes through the territory of the Vocontii to enter that of the Allobroges and then the Segusiavi, groups from several local tribes are joining the Helvetii.

These include the Latobrigi, Raurici, and Tulingi, making them one of the largest and most powerful forces in all of Gaul. They also unite themselves to the Boii who have crossed the Rhine to assault the Taurisci.

As the Helvetii and their allies depart, they burn their villages and any food stocks which cannot be carried. The statement is clear - they do not intend to return. After some skirmishing, the Helvetii and the Romans face each other at the Battle of Bibracte in 58 BC, just outside the Aeduii oppidum of the same name.

The Helvetii are mercilessly crushed by Caesar's total of six Roman legions. Perhaps two thirds of their number, men, women and children, are killed on the day, while another twenty thousand are killed in the subsequent pursuit.

The Roman troops of Julius Caesar prepare to face the Helvetii and their allies (which probably include some Boii elements) at the Battle of Bibracte in 58 BC, outside the oppidum of the Aeduii tribe

The shattered remnants of the Helvetii are forced back to their homeland but, having been greatly reduced, they will be unable to fight off Germanic incursions which could also threaten Gaul.

Julius Caesar allows the relatively hospitable Boii to settle a buffer zone to the north of the Helvetii and east of the Aeduii, but even this shift leaves gaps for Germanic incursions, and one such incursion is already underway to the north.

Caesar receives a federation of chiefs from tribes which include the Sequani, all of whom are suffering thanks to the Suebic invasion under Ariovistus. It is this campaign and its mixed outcome, despite victory in battle, which triggers Julius Caesar's campaigns in Gaul from this point onwards, which result in the eventualannexation of the entire land into the Roman state.

The Harz is now a national park in Germany to ensure that this primeval forest survives, but in the first century BC it was probably home to the Suevi

53 BC

As noted by Julius Caesar in his Gallic Wars, the Hercynian forest (known to the Greeks as Orcynia) is home to a mixture of Germanic people and a once-powerful arm of the Volcae Tectosages. The forest lies on the east bank of the Rhine (this forms the northern border of those lands which are known to the ancient writers of the Mediterranean, and the modern Black Forest forms its western part).

Its breadth is such that it takes a quick traveller nine days to cross it through uncertain paths, as there are no known roads. It begins at the frontiers of the Helvetii, Nemetes, and Raurici, and extends in a line along the River Danube to the territories of the Daci and the Anarti. From there its borders twist northwards into vast lands which have not been charted by Mediterranean cultures.

52 BC

While Caesar is tied down in Rome, the Gauls begin their revolt, resolving to die in freedom rather than be suppressed by the invaders. The Carnutes take the lead under Cotuatus and Conetodunus when they kill Roman traders who have settled in Genabum. News of the event reaches the Arverni that morning, and Vercingetorix summons his people to arms.

The Aeduii confederation is shown here, around 100 BC, with borders approximate and fairly conjectural, based on the locations of the tribes half a century later - it can be seen that the Aulerci at least migrate farther north-west during that time, although the remainder largely stay put (click or tap on map to view full sized)

He sends Lucterius of the Cadurci into the territory of the Ruteni to gain their support, and marches in person to the Bituriges. The latter, under the protection of the Aeduii, send to them for help to resist the Arverni but are forced to join the revolt.

Lucterius continues to the Gabali and Nitiobroges and wins their support, collecting together a large force ahead of an advance into the province of Narbonensis. Caesar gets there first and rallies the garrisons among the Ruteni and Volcae Arecomisci, and Lucterius is forced to retreat.

From there Caesar circles through the territory of the generally pro-Roman Helvii (who provide auxiliaries) to reach that of the Arverni, despite deep winter snows in the mountains.

Vercingetorix, his cavalry subsequently routed in battle, withdraws in good order to Alesia, a major fort belonging to the Mandubii. The remaining cavalry are dispatched back to their tribes to bring reinforcements.

The site of Alesia, a major fort belonging to the Mandubii tribe of Celts, was the scene of the final desperate stand-off between Rome and the Gauls in 52 BC

Caesar begins a siege of Alesia, aiming on starving out the inhabitants. Four relief forces amounting to a considerable number of men and horses are assembled in the territory of the Aeduii by the council of the Gaulish nobility. Among those demanded from the tribes of Gaul are ten thousand men each from the Bellovaci, Helvetii, Lemovices and Lingones.

Together they attempt to relieve Vercingetorix at the siege of Alesia, but the combined relief force is soundly repulsed by Julius Caesar. Seeing that all is lost, Vercingetorix surrenders to Caesar.

The garrison is taken prisoner, as are the survivors from the relief army. They are either sold into slavery or given as booty to Caesar's legionaries, apart from the Aeduii and Arverni warriors who are released and pardoned in order to secure the allegiance of these important and powerful tribes.

With this action, all of Gaul has been brought under Roman domination, and the history of its population of Celts and Aquitani is tied to that of the emerging Roman empire.

Having surrendered with honour to Caesar in 52 BC, Vercingetorix remained a potent symbol of resistance to Roman domination, so his murder in 46 BC dealt a terminal blow to hopes of renewed Gaulish freedom

AD 68 - 69

With Nero's Rome slipping into chaos, Caius Julius Vindex, a governor in Gaul, launches a revolt with support from Servius Sulpicius Galba. Vindex soon finds that his levies are no match for legions sent from Germania Superior (IIII Macedonica, XXI Rapax, and XXII Primigenia), under the command of Lucius Verginius Rufus and supported by ever-reliable Gallic communities such as the Lingones.

Nero loses control in Rome and commits suicide, ending the Julio-Claudian dynasty of emperors. The scene is set for the 'Year of Four Emperors'.

The Roman senate votes Galba into office as emperor at the same time as they declare Nero a public enemy. Suddenly those legions and Gaulish tribes which had supported the former regime by suppressing Vindex's revolt find themselves under suspicion. Supported by the Helvetii, Galba replaces their commander with Marcus Hordeonius Flaccus, which is interpreted as a sign of distrust.

Galba seized Rome and the imperial title in AD 68, but immediately faced opposition by other generals who thought that their claim was better, sparking the 'Year of the Four Emperors' in AD 69

The legions in Gaul revolt, accepting as their emperor Aulus Vitellius, governor of Germania Inferior. When this news reaches Rome, Galba panics and announces the appointment of a successor. The result is that imperial guard assassinates Galba and replaces him with Marcus Salvius Otho.

69

Among the first measures to be enacted by Otho is to award Roman citizenship to all Lingones, hoping that they will abandon their alliance with Vitellius. Unfortunately, eight Batavian auxiliary units meet up with the legions of Vitellius in the country of the Lingones.

On 16 April AD 69, the Vitellians defeat Otho's army near Cremona. Otho commits suicide and the senate hastily sends its congratulations to Vitellius. The Helvetii are also crushed by the forces of Vitellius. The capital at Aventicum surrenders and the tribe is apparently only saved from being wiped out by the intervention of the Helvetian envoy to Vitellis, Claudius Cossos.

The Gaulish and Germanic Batavian revolt of AD 69-70 was a major contributor to the instability experienced in the Roman empire during the 'Year of Four Emperors'

406 - 409

The Burgundians cross the Rhine en masse and establish their own territory as a Roman allied state on land which had once been occupied by the Helvetii.

Once there, they find groups of other Germanic people who have been settled on vacant lands by the Romans in the third century, including the Chamavi and other constituent elements of the Franks. The Helvetii name is preserved in the later native internal name for Switzerland: Helvetia.